Billiard-cushion.



No. 703,744. Patented Sept. 9, I902. B. A. STEVENS. BILLIARD CUSHION.

(Application filed Nov. 21, 1901.)

(No Model.)

WITNESSES INVENTIOR -Attorneys.

m: mums r'zrzns co. PHOTO-LYING wnsumcmu. u. c.

' 'UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BENJAMIN A. STEVENS, OF TOLEDO, OHIO.

BlLLlARD-CUSHION.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 708,744, dated September 9, 1 902.

Application filed November 21, 1901. Serial No. 83,071. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern/.-

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN A. STEVENS,

a citizen of the United States, residing at T0- ledo, county of Lucas, State of Ohio, have in-.

vented a certain new and useful Improvement in Billiard-Cushions; and I declare the fol-I lowin'g to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to 'make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to billiard-cushions; and it consists in the improvements hereinafter described, and set forth in the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings; Figure 1 is a cross-section of the cushion, a

portion of the rail and the table ofv a billiard-- table, showing a billiard-ball upon the table in contact with the cushion. Fig. 2 is a crossproximately parallel and near to the front face of said cushion.

E E E are strips of canvas embedded in the material of the cushion, so as to be located approximately in vertical planes. The canvas strips E E E are located with their upper edges somewhat below the upper surface of the cushion O and extend downward into the standards H. F is the aperture, approximately rectangular in cross-section, located near the upperand outer corners of said cushion and extending longitudinally thereof.

F is a piece of soft unvulcanized rubber, semi-elliptical in cross-section, located within the aperture F, with its point against the center of the forward wall of said aperture and its base against the rear wall thereof.

G is a strip of resilient metal embedded in the material of the cushion O,extending longitudinally of said cushion and located close to theforward wall of the aperture F. Where the back of the cushion O is secured to the rail B the surface of the rail is grooved, as shown most distinctly in Fig. 3. In the drawings the grooves are indicated by the letter Z). The lower part of the cushion C is cut away atintervals to form standards H, that extend throughout the length of the cushion. The standards H extend about one-half to twothirds of the height of the cushion, leaving the upper part of the cushion solid, against which solid part the ball impinges and which acts to cause the rebound of the ball. The standards H serve to support the solid part of the cushion, preventing it from crimping or bending downward, while they ofier no resistance to the horizontal movement of a part of said solid upper part of the cushion. It

will be observed that the soft rubber F does not quite fill the aperture F. This is in order that the soft rubber F may be free to change its shape in cross-section independent of the walls of the aperture F. The grooves I) serve to permit the change of form of. the back of the cushion at a distance from the outer surface of said cushion, as do also the spaces between the standards H and also the space between the walls of the aperture F and the rubber F within said aperture. As will be clearly seen in Fig. 1, th ecushion 0 is so located that the ball strikes its upper outer corner in a plane slightly above the center of the ball.

By the above construction I secure a quickacting cushion which-is particularly resilient at its upper outer corner and a cushion that gives from the impact of the ballin line with the motion of said ball and returns in the same line. Rubber is practically inelastic to a force tending to change its Volume only, and the rebounding effect is entirely dueto the distorted rubber resuming its original form. I have therefore by the above construction provided for the rubber readily altering its form over a considerable surface, so that its action will not be made slow and inefficient by the necessity of carrying a considerable weight. Of course the grooves 12 I00 might be found in the rubber instead of the Wood.

What I claim is 1. The combination of a billiard-table rail and a resilient cushion, the cushion being secured to the rail, two series of grooves crossing each other being provided between adjacent surfaces of the cushion and rail.

2. A billiard-cushion provided with a longitudinal aperture therein, and a strip of softer rubber than that of which the body of (the cushion is composed inserted in said apmaterial of the cushion adjacent to the front Wall of said aperture.

4. A rubber billiard-cushion provided with a longitudinal aperture, a strip of resilient material of a difierent degree of hardness from that of the cushion inserted in said aperture, said strip having a shape of cross-section such that it shall contact the wall of said aperture at two or more points and shall leave an opening between its periphery and the wall of said aperture between said contacting points, said opening being so located that the rubber displaced by the contact of the ball shall pass into it.

In testimony whereof I sign this specification in the presence of two witnesses.

BENJAMIN A. STEVENS. 

